Tuesday, April 8, 2008

QOV Day was a huge success!

Here we have Karen and Jeanne stringing away.

In the opposite corner, Diane and Susan were ready for round 2.

And laying out the first of the quilts we have Susan on the left and my co-coordinator Kathy who assisted everyone with everything.

With 11 participants and a great deal of "string", 191 blocks were assembled. We'll be adding a few more blocks to make a total of 6 quilt tops. Way to go ladies!

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Quilts of Valor Quilt-A-Thon


It's done, it's ready, ohhhh yeah!!! Now if we can just get everyone to sign up, or donate scraps, or bring chocolate. Did I mention that you're invited also?

Saturday, April 5th from 10 am to 5 pm. Please e-mail me if you can come or if you would like to donate. Be sure to include an e-mail address where I can reach you.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Highland Peaks


Quilter's Rule #8: When pulling fabric for project A and you've lost sight of the floor due to stacks of plaids all over the place, it just makes sense to keep on cutting for project B or C or even D before cleaning up the mess. Kinda like baking Christmas cookies all in one day.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

Monday, March 17, 2008

Highland Plaid

Four bins full of plaid fabrics have been waiting for that lightbulb moment . . . for years now. Inspiration from Bonnie's site, as well as lovely examples from Lynn's site finally convinced me to play along.


After a bit of tweaking, I think I've gotten it right.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Building a better table support.


Awhile ago, Elaine was pinning a quilt on the floor and her poor back was complaining. I promised her that I would do a post on building a table support to raise the pinning table to an appropriate height. The following photos show how I created risers that work for my height. Obviously you will have to determine which height works best for you. The risers that I built raise my pinning table by 12".

I used 2 x 6 and 1 x 6 boards as they create a much more stable base. I had built others out of 1 x 4's and 2 x 4's, but they were not wide enough, far too light, and allowed the table to wobble. This is not good when working on a large quilt.

Often construction sites will burn or throw out these small pieces and you can pick them up for free by talking to the job foreman.

If you don't own a cordless drill, look for one designed for women's smaller hands. I'm not sure which brand makes them, but check your local building supply store to see which one works for you. Buy the best that you can afford and it will last a long time. I bought my Makita about 5 years ago for my birthday. Also, buy the best drill bits that you can afford. High quality steel will stay sharper longer.



Begin by measuring the distance of your table legs, outside edge to outside edge. These measure 21". Since my tablesaw is in storage, friends of mine cut my boards for me. The horizontal 2 x 6's and 1 x 6 measure 22". This allows just enough room for my table legs to rest without sliding around.